News Article - July 2001

Paper Vs Electronic data capture

With the rise in popularity and the drive towards greater use of the Internet, organisations are becoming increasingly aware of the need to ensure that they are not left behind in the great advances being made by this technology. It means that decisions, sometimes hasty, are being taken to abandon paper based systems in preference for electronic data capture methods. We are often asked by users the relative advantages and disadvantages of each data capture type when compared to others. A further consideration is always the number of technology types available as well as whether they can be mixed, i.e. issue the same questionnaire in both electronic and paper based formats at the same time then file/collect the data into a single source. The following is designed to assist clients in making the right choice:-

Web data capture options running either on an intranet or Internet are becoming increasingly popular and have the advantage of being accessible by any user having access to a computer. The disadvantages are that you must have access to a computer, be reasonably computer literate and, if traffic is heavy, be prepared for a slow response.

E-Mail data capture has the advantage of being sent to specific addresses as well as allowing users to work off-line from any servers (network or Internet). The main disadvantage is that the sender must have a big address book, may encounter fire-wall security problems, allow time for the files to be transmitted and the user must again have a degree of computer literacy.

Network data capture has the advantage of security and being accessible to anyone in a controlled environment. A big disadvantage is that it is tied to a relatively small number of access points (when compared to the Web or E-Mail) and the results can be very spectacular in the way the system reacts if too many users try to log on at the same time.

Optical Mark Reading uses paper-based forms which respondees simply mark (using a dash) to answer a question. Needs no special equipment to mark a form other than a pen/pencil. Can achieve very high throughput speeds with very low error rates (less than half percent). Main disadvantages are more administration needed to gather data, specialised scanners and cannot pick up names, dates or other text easily.

Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) again uses paper based forms which respondees can enter names, dates etc. as well as marks with no special equipment needed other than a pen/pencil. Also can be used with relatively low cost image scanners. Disadvantages are that it is far slower than OMR with high user intervention required to verify data due to differences in a respondees handprint, needs far more administration and hence increases operating costs.

Combination Paper & Electronic Systems have the advantage of using a mix of both technology types, which can be administered to suit the requirements of particular locations, i.e. using paper based forms where no connections to computers/networks etc. are available at one site and an Internet solution at another one. Disadvantage is that most suppliers cannot cover all technology types easily and questionnaire formats vary from one technology to another.

Whatever option you may wish to use we, at Trax UK, will be able to assist you as our Print & Scan software meets the criteria for any of the above solutions.